1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for taking an image, an apparatus and method for processing an image, a program, and a storage medium and more particularly, to an apparatus and method for taking an image, an apparatus and method for processing an image, a program, and a storage medium, for allowing an image of a subject seen from all directions to be easily taken and displayed.
2. Description of the Related Art
In conventional displays using, for example, cathode ray tube (CRT), liquid crystal panel, or a projector, an image of a subject taken by a video camera (hereinafter, also referred to simply as a camera) or the like is displayed in a simple manner such that the image displayed represents, as shown in FIG. 1, the subject seen from a viewpoint at which the camera is located.
That is, the camera can take only an image of a subject seen from the location of the camera, and the image displayed simply represents the subject seen from the viewpoint corresponding to the location of the camera used to take the image.
If images of a subject are taken by many cameras placed around the subject, or if images of a subject are taken using a single camera while moving the camera around the subject, image data of the subject seen from various directions can be obtained.
However, in the method in which many cameras are placed around a subject, the problem is that many cameras are needed. In the method in which a single camera is moved from a location to another around a subject, it takes a long time to take images of the subject, and it is required that the subject should be at rest during that long time in which images are taken.